A/N: I did a little calculating, and I discovered that if I wrote a chapter for every Pokémon, plus 10 celebrity spotlights per region, and had an average of 1.5K words per chapter, then the finished story would be around 700 chapters and 1,050,000 (one million and fifty thousand) words! I think that would be a very good achievement indeed.

Wait… what are the chances of Game Freak introducing a new generation while I'm still writing this story? I'll just hope for a Hoenn remake…


Number: # 047

Type: Bug - Grass

Species: Leaf-Wrapped

Gender: 50% Male – 50% Female

Japanese Name: Kurumayu

Description: Hah, apparently 'Swadloon is not impressed' is a huge meme over in Hoenn, and I understand why.

During evolution Sewaddle's body is not the only thing altered, the balance of chemicals and hormones in its brain undergoes a dramatic change too. This results in Swadloon's previously aggressive demeanour transforming into one of submission and pessimism. This isn't surprising as Swadloon is now less mobile in this form, making it yearn for its previously lithe form as a Sewaddle. This form is still another intermediate phase that Swadloon must patiently endure through in order to reach its final, moderately powerful form of Leavanny.

Swadloon's new body is little more than a yellow ball, with small arms and feet that are very rarely seen. Its feet only allow it to shuffle slowly across the forest floor, and its little arms only allow it to grasp small, basic things. In order to protect itself from predators and the weather, as well as make itself more capable, Swadloon drapes itself with many layers of leaves and foliage. With this thick blanket of flora Swadloon has increased its Defense, plus it can manipulate this blanket like a puppeteer, using long leaves as arms rather than its own incapable ones.

Last year I sent a Swadloon specimen to my young friend Bugsy; since he is a prodigy when to comes to Bug types, and he made an amazing discovery! Swadloon only uses living leaves for its blanket, and for years we did not know why. But it turns out that Swadloon secretes nutrients that keep the leaves alive, even long after they have been torn from their tree.

This is a form of symbiosis, where two organisms work together to survive. For this example, Swadloon feeds the leaves so they may remain alive, and in return the leaves protect Swadloon. Whether or not this is actually symbiosis is a heated debate, as the leaves aren't protecting Swadloon of their own volition. Rather, Swadloon is forcing them to protect it; otherwise they will die without its support. This is similar to the Parasect of the Kanto region.

For its entire life in this form, Swadloon lives in damp, dark forests by itself; this is why they are so endemic throughout Pinwheel forest. Evolving into Leavanny requires friendship, so Swadloon spends most of its time hastily shuffling across the forest floor, in search of a trainer to capture it, or a fellow Pokémon who will accept it. Due to this diet, Swadloon's excrement is packed full of healthy nutrients that feeds all of the plant life, encouraging them to grow even more. For this reason, environmentalists are very affectionate towards Swadloon.

Personality: Swadloon is the champion of poker faces. It's also the champion of pessimism too. Poor Swadloon always looks on the gloomier side of life, and is prone to ignoring potentially happy things out of fear that it will only cause more sadness. Due to this most Pokémon avoid it so they aren't swallowed by its black-hole of a personality.

As glum as they are, Swadloon are a very determined species indeed. When they have set their mind to something, they don't stop until it has been completed. This is why they are always actively feeding, because they become set one becoming a Leavanny the moment they have evolved into Swadloon!

Swadloon looks very tough and callous, and many people fall for this harsh exterior. But in reality Swadloon is emotionally brittle and falls apart under the slightest cruelty, and thus it acts callous and tough to dissuade anyone from being unkind. Unfortunately this backfires as it convinces people Swadloon is tough enough to endure harshness.

To summarize, Swadloon is a Pokémon counterpart to a common angsty, antisocial human teenager. This actually makes sense because this form could be considered the 'teen' form of a three-stage evolutionary such as Swadloon.

Lifespan: Now, this depends entirely on how well feed Swadloon was across its life. If well fed they will reach around 15 years, whereas if they eat poorly they will only live around 9 years. That's a gracious amount of time to let a Pokémon evolve, so don't worry.

Diet: Swadloon only eats fallen damp, preferably fermenting leaves. The bacteria that breaks down the leaves is just what Swadloon wants in its stomach, as the waste produced from these bacteria is what really feeds Swadloon. It's going to be rather hard for you to obtain these regularly; unless you are content to camp in the murky confines of Pinwheel forest for months. Fortunately you can buy bundles of these fermenting leaves from gardening shops, as the owners will understand your hardships.

How To Bond: This species can be rather difficult to handle, which can be incredibly frustrating if you expected things to get any easier after evolving it from Sewaddle. Regardless of how you caught it, Swadloon will act indifferently and be negatively aloof, giving you the impression that it doesn't care for you; but you mustn't be fooled by this façade!

Earlier I compared Swadloon to a teenage human, and this is a point where this rings true. Neither Swadloon nor your teenage child would run away from you, and they both do it for the same reason. No matter how callous they act, no matter how much they insist they don't like you, they still love you and know that you're all they have in this world.

Being alone makes Swadloon even more depressed, so when you take it in you have already healed its heart somewhat.

Never be mean to poor Swadloon, you'll never understand how severe the impact your words have. Instead, be very optimistic and cheerful, always complimenting Swadloon even when it doesn't do its best. You won't notice, but Swadloon will be smiling brightly on its inside.

Swadloon can only evolve when it has developed a close friendship and is able to think optimistically, so kindness and virtue are vital to rescuing it from this middle form.

Battling: Due to its body, Swadloon is rather slow. But in exchange for speed it gains Defense, something that it requires to offset the ludicrous amount of typing weaknesses that it has.

Swadloon also still suffers from six weaknesses and a limited movepool, so using Swadloon is battle is tricky. Don't feel pressured into making Swadloon battle either, since Swadloon evolves solely via friendship, battling isn't actually required.

If you are going to dare send Swadloon out to battle, you need to have the eyes of a Braviary; watching for enemies that could potentially use effective moves and be prepared to switch Swadloon at the batter of an eyelash.

The poor critter doesn't actually learn any new moves bar two, but both are of some use. Grass Whistle can lull enemies to sleep, giving you time to take them out or flee, and Protect can temporarily shield Swadloon from destructive attacks. The standard tactic of Grass Whistle, String Shot and then Bug Bute/Razor Leaf is all you really have to go by.

It's not the type of Pokémon suited for battle, so don't expect any amazing results. If fact, all you should expect is one beat-up and grumpy Pokémon!

With Fellow Pokémon: It will keep to itself and shy away from other Pokémon, maybe even scowling at them if they approach. This will only confound Swadloon's social issues so this needs to be resolved.

As much as Swadloon might protest, you need to force it to stick with other Pokémon. It will feel insecure with all these people around it, but gradually it will learn to cope with the lack of personal space. This is a situation where you need to be cruel to be kind.

Naturally Swadloon is very afraid of Fire types, but this is understandable; being around someone who roast off all of your protective clothing isn't a nice thought. For the sake of peace it is better that you keep Swadloon far away from any Fire types.

Warnings: None.

Summary: Swadloon is a rather troublesome Pokémon that can't really reward your efforts, and may even give the impression that it dislikes you. Even so, with a little patience this Pokémon can evolve into a caring, patient and very helpful Leavanny in the future.

Next Time… Number 048 Leavanny!


A/N: I don't know why, but this chapter was a little heart-warming. But isn't Swadloon's face awesome? I'd have one just for the sake of seeing it glare at me like that every day.

Due to Swadloon's tiny movepool I didn't really have anything to say in the battling section. When talking about a Pokémon with so many flaws it's hard to come up with an effective strategy, so I may have to refer to Serebii or Smogon for Leavanny's chapter. (Although I go there for each chapter anyway…)

Fun Facts: Swadloon, Seadra, Cascoon and Vigoroth are the only Pokémon who lose one of their pre-evolution's Ability, then regain it upon evolution to their final form.

Swadloon is based on the caterpillar of the Epargyreus clarus during chrysalis.

Swadloon's personality and appearance may refer to the social anxiety disorder Hikikomori, which is a social disorder usually found in Japanese teenagers; where they are too nervous or scared to leave their home or interact with people, thus locking themselves up in their houses. They sometimes wrap themselves up in blankets as well, referring to Swadloon's leaf blanket.

Most Hikikomori suffers recover by gradually making friends; coincidentally Swadloon evolves into Leavanny through friendship.